Squad news

FAREWELL TO PLETIKOSA

17 May 2016Pletikosa will never forget what he lived on last Saturday against Real Madrid. It was the dreamed good-bye to him. He offered a press conference and also talked of the incidents that tarnished the end of season at the club.

Twenty years after signing his first professional contract, Stipe Pletikosa says good-bye to football. He only played twice at Depor, but wanted to offer a press conference in order to thank the public and talk of his decision and the stage at Deportivo.

He firstly explained the decision of leaving the game after signing during the winter window, “First to all, my decision was strictly because of my family. It’s not been easy to organize life with small kids in this beautiful town. And about the sporting reason, you know it’s always there, honestly I expected to play more, you know, and the main reason is always the family.”

Later the Croatian explained why an interview from Croatia was saying that there were problems between the keeper and the coaching staff, and he explained that, “It was really strange for a journalist to not see me playing on here and been a third choice goalkeeper, so they ask me about the reason and they also read the press on here. In football everything can happen, but I said that it could be the reason, but that my main goal was to be fit to play.”

About positive memories from his stage at Depor he commented that, “Definitely games like the one on Saturday. The emotions I had in the game, because I felt it in my heart and soul, the way the fans made it really big despite I didn’t play too much.”

He also explained that the club never presented an offer in order to continue, “I talked about it with Richard [Barral] and also want to thank him for signing me. But for me it wasn’t the option.” He was conscious that it was difficult to get minutes at Depor according to the circumstances of his arrival, “Honestly, I was ready to help the team to stay up, in the Premier League, it was the most important thing. Also, I told you before that I needed maybe two or three weeks to be completely fit and that’s what happened. It was a coach’s decision and I accept it, because I know I did my best thanks to Manu Sotelo [keeper’s trainer].”

Pletikosa said that he never surrendered after he wasn’t getting minutes, “It wasn’t an easy time after Bilbao’s game, especially after Poroto was ruled out until the end of the season and I didn’t see my name in the roster. I had a conversation with the coach, but I wouldn’t like to go out with what happened or what we said to each other, because some things should stay inside the changing room. The most important thing that I learned in my career was to never give up. I always try to watch in my head football as a sport. Everybody has a lot of things happening around them. I tried to put things on the side, because it’s the only way to play as on Sunday. “

He was also describing what happened on Saturday against Real Madrid, “It was really, really a big day in your career. In your career you will remember a lot of things until you die, and I don’t lie, twenty years ago I didn’t imagine it was going to be like this. I never imagined that it was going to be like that. I started to cry. It was a mix of emotions when I hear “Pleti quedate” I felt many emotions.”

The keeper also said that the players shouldn’t have talked too much about the incidents that occurred at the team, “I will like to say that it wasn’t easy, not at all. But what I don’t like is that some things must always stay inside the family, and it must be resolved inside the family, only that way the team can go up. What I think is that inside the team the players should have more responsibility, and the coach too, to talk about this in public. It doesn’t look good to talk in public, because the fans that are supporting us don’t deserve that. This is a good school for everyone, so it wouldn’t happen again.”

Asked about his best memories in the game, he said that, “It’s always my childhood, my childhood club, for me Hajduk Split is the biggest club in the world. So, the best memories are always when you start to play, your first club, the national team… those are your best memories I carry in my heart. It will also be there what I lived on Saturday as my son was with me. It’s the best memory that I can have, especially when we were going downthe tunnel, because he told me: daddy, daddy, I am shacking, because I am very happy.”

Finally, Pletikosa talked of what Víctor missed in the crisis lived by Deportivo, “I think he should lead the team with more authority, he should lead the team with a bigger strength as a leader of the group, because this is one of the parts in the game: the managing of the group. If you lose the group then you are done.”